The Founder Skill Nobody Talks About - Heather Udo - S5 - E9

This episode of A Founder’s Life is brought to you by Thankz — helping founders scale with reliable remote talent. Get $1,000 off your first month by emailing [email protected] with the subject line Founder’s Life.🌐 Follow A Founder’s Life • YouTube:   @AFoundersLife   • LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/a-founder-s-life-podcast/ • Instagram: @afounderslife  • Spotify & Apple Podcast: https://linktr.ee/afounderslife👤 Connect with Today’s Guest – Heather UdoCompany: ShoppableWebsite: https://www.shoppable.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/heatherudo/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heatherudo1/The biggest skill every founder needs isn’t raising money or writing code—it’s learning how to hear “no” without giving up.In this episode of A Founder’s Life, Leo Gestetner sits down with Heather Udo, Founder and CEO of Shoppable, to discuss entrepreneurship, innovation, resilience, and the journey of building a company that transformed the way brands sell products online.Heather shares how a frustrating shopping experience while furnishing her first apartment led her to identify a massive gap in e-commerce. Instead of accepting that frustration as normal, she built Shoppable—a technology platform that enables brands, publishers, and creators to embed checkout experiences directly into content.But this conversation goes far beyond technology.Heather reflects on the countless rejections she received while pitching some of the world’s largest retailers, why persistence ultimately opened doors, and how balancing entrepreneurship with motherhood has reshaped her definition of success.Throughout the conversation, we explore entrepreneurship, business leadership, resilience, family, health, startup growth, and the importance of building companies around real customer problems.Whether you’re launching your first startup or growing an existing business, Heather shares practical lessons every entrepreneur can apply.In this episode you’ll learn:• Why hearing “no” is part of every entrepreneurial journey • How solving your own frustration can lead to a successful business • Why founders should validate ideas before building products • The importance of starting with a true minimum viable product (MVP) • How persistence turns rejection into opportunity • Why work-life integration is more realistic than work-life balance • How fitness and healthy routines improve entrepreneurial performance • Why networking accelerates startup growth • How customer conversations shape better productsHeather also shares how moving to New York transformed her business, why becoming a mother changed the way she leads, and how building a remote company has allowed her to spend more meaningful time with her family while continuing to grow Shoppable.If you enjoy conversations about entrepreneurship, founder mindset, business leadership, startup growth, innovation, resilience, personal development, and building meaningful businesses, you’ll enjoy this episode.LinkedInlinkedin.com/in/leogestetnerWebsiteleogestetner.com/leoSubscribe Now!youtube.com/@afounderslife?sub_confirmation=1